How do I backup whole drive in Linux Mint Cinnamon Sylvia 18.3?

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Drive D and drive E? Linux does not use drives, but uses a single file tree.

Do you want to make a backup or copy the files?

To make a backup, in Linux I find the disk partition ID of the source disk, then I compress this into a single file:

1) Open a command prompt (terminal) window and switch to superuser using the command "sudo su". You will probably have to enter your own login password at this point.

2) Change to the directory where you want the backup. It must not be part of the branch of the file system tree (i.e a sub-directory) part of the file system you are backing up. Perhaps something like "cd /backup".

3) Run the command "df -k" and find the branch of the file system you want to back up. it will be something like "/dev/sda3" although the 'a' and the '3' may be different.

4) Run the command "gzip </dev/sda3 >backup_name.gz", where the sda3 is replaced with the actual drive you are backing up. This will create a compressed backup and can take an hour or two to run. "backup_name" can be replaced with a meaningful string such as "drive_D".

To restore the backup, repeat the process but in step 4 run the command "gunzip <backup_name.gz >/dev/sda3".

If you simply want to copy the files:

1) Open the terminal window and switch to superuser as above.

2) Go to the directory you want to copy.

3) Run the command:

"find . | cpio -pvdmu /path_to_destination folder"

You might have to check on the parameters for cpio. This command can be implemented slightly differently in different versions of Linux. The basic parameters are what I used a few months ago, but I don't have Mint installed so I cannot check the latest options. Basically they are:

'p' pass-through (copy) from the source to the destination. The source is the current directory as specified by the '.' in the find command.

'v' verbose. Show the names of the files as they are copied.

'd' create any required directories.

'm' keep the date and modification times the same.

'u' overwrite and existing file unconditionally.

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I hope this helps.

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